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By Tshego Lepule 
22h ago
Cape Town – Desperate consumers whose pockets have been hard hit by the effects of Covid-19 are victims of the greedy usurers.
South Africans find themselves in difficult financial situations with low wages or no income.
Monetizing sharks or sharks, as they are known in the municipalities, are prolific and easily carry out their trade. They charge interest rates of 40% to 60%. And with more unemployment, unscrupulous lenders are raising their rates even further due to the risk of not getting their money back.
A lender spoke to Weekend Argus and explained that for some, this is an often exploited form of employment.
“Generally, I charge 50% interest, this remains the same as long as the loan amount is not fully paid. For example, if I loan someone R1000, that person is expected to pay R1500 at the beginning of next month or R500 each month until they can pay the full R1500, “he said.
“But because of the stress on many people and the nature of this business, I have decided not to lend money, but I continue to charge interest on those to whom I had loaned money prior to coronarivus.”
The woman said that lending people money at 50% interest during this period would not only be detrimental to clients, but that they would fight to return the money.
“I can lose a lot of money with people who cannot make payments. The lender’s business is very risky, so it is up to individual lenders to be careful or ruthless. “
She said that some loan sharks had increased their interest 100%.
“But this is pure greed. Many people have had drastic pay cuts, and some have no income. It is ruthless to go even deeper into the sinkhole in which our people find themselves. ”
Olwethu Thutani said she made a loan before closing and was being harassed to repay it because there was no paid vacation for the loan sharks.
“I am a domestic worker and broken between three households during the week. So none of my ladies have me in the FIU, so I can’t claim that and I’m stuck, but the mason does not want to know anything about it, “he said.
“Mashonisa’s husband came to my house last week on Thursday and took my television and my entertainment equipment to keep him until I pay the money because I couldn’t pay it in late March.” Now I am afraid because they will come back to pick me up again on Monday and I have nothing. “
Pensioners are also a vulnerable group who are often targeted by loan sharks who lend them money and keep their Sassa cards and IDs as collateral.
Civil society organization Black Sash said a lender was arrested in KwaZulu-Natal last month after he was found to be in possession of Sassa cards and identifications of grant recipients.
“Unfortunately, such illegal practices of loan predators continue to persist,” said Evashnee Naidu of the organization.
Weekend Argus
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